People can’t take “perceived” value to the bank.
They won’t stay in a long-term relationship absent trust.
Nobody knows what the “best” solution is.

Violate these, and you create a believe-ability gap.

Perceived value makes people wonder, “where’s the beef?”
Lack of trust generates suspicion.
Claiming you have the best causes people to think, “prove it!”

If any of these are present, it’s likely game over before game starts.

According to Stephen M.R. Covey, trust is not just a soft, nice to have virtue; it’s a hard-edged economic driver. Because we’re so interdependent and there’s so much noise and clutter…

Trust is the first currency of entrepreneurs.

Trust is like health — it’s neglected and taken for granted until it’s lost.
It’s a combination of character, competence and credibility.

Here’s the state of trust according to Covey:

* 34% of Americans trust others (68% in Scandinavia)
* 49% of employees trust their senior leaders
* 76% of employees see illegal or unethical action at work
* 43% to 75% of students have cheated to get into grad school

High trust organizations outperform low trust ones by 286%.
Among the best 100 companies to work for, trust is 60%-75% of the equation.

High trust is a dividend.
Low trust is a tax.

Only 10% of us trust Congress to do what’s best for us.
Yet, we re-elect incumbents 95% of the time.

It’s no wonder we pay such a heavy leadership “tax.”

Nothing is as fast as the speed of trust.

Warren Buffett did a $29 billion deal with Walmart in 29 days based on a handshake alone, with no due diligence, after only a 2-hour meeting. Buffet gets enormous amounts done with trust. His CEOs stay on because they like being trusted by him.

My dear friend Dave Corbin, executive producer and star of the movie “Pass It On” calls me the “Mentor to the Masters” because a “Who’s Who” of experts call me for advice.

Nothing has been more instrumental in my life and my work than the high value of high trust.

When you act in the best interests of others, you inspire trust.
When you act only in your best interest, you compromise trust.

Do what’s “highest and best for all” and you become THE trusted advisor.

People like being trusted, and they crave trust in others.

Do you trust easily and readily, and inspire trust in others?
Or are you suspicious of others, and are they suspicious of you?

One of the best ways to build trust is to stop making withdrawals from the “trust” accounts you maintain with others.

The people you serve are overloaded with hype and overblown promises.
Trust sets you apart from the hypesters and hucksters.

Nothing creates confidence more quickly or effectively than the transfer of trust.

How can you create a trust dividend instead of paying trust tax?

We hear that our current financial mess is a credit crisis.

It’s more a crisis of confidence, values and trust.

We are paying a huge tax for placing confidence, value and trust in those who haven’t earned it and don’t have our best interests at heart.

How can you convert trust from a tax into a dividend?

Value your intuition.
Be better at due diligence.
Don’t be persuaded by false, fabricated or manufactured influence.